1878-S VAM-59

Contents

1878-S VAM-59 Long Nock Long Center Arrow Feather, S Set Slightly Left

Discovered by Jeff Oxman, June 1997.
This coin is a Top 100 Morgan VAM, This coin is a Top 30 1878-S Variety.59(revised) II 1 · B1e (Long Center Arrow Feather, S Set Slightly Left) ( ? ) I-5 R-7Obverse II 1– Diagonal die clash line extending to left from eyelid tip.Reverse B1e– Small III S mint mark set very slightly left of center, but not as far left or as high as VAM 57. Diemarkers of vertical polishing line between eagle’s right leg and tail feathers and diagonal polishing line on middle tail feather below olive branch.

Comments:1. There are nine known varieties of the long nocks. The keys to identifying them are die clashes and gouges in Liberty's eye as well as mint mark position. Differentiating them can be difficult, especially on well worn specimens.2. Long Nocks include VAM-26, VAM-27, VAM-56, VAM-57, VAM-58, VAM-59, VAM-60, VAM-62 and VAM-72.

LVA Plate Photos:

Additional Photos:

1878-S Long Nock Reverse. A small quantity of 1878 coin minted in San Francisco used a B1 reverse die. This B1 reverse can be detected by looking for a long center nock on the arrow shaft (see red arrow). These dies appear to have been used for the first coins that left the mint and any 1878-S coin with a B1 reverse is a rarity. Most of these coins are well circulated with even XF coins being exceedingly rare.
VAM-59 has a unique line in the eye and a mint mark set slightly left of center.
Partially broken right 4th star:
From a D.Halladay specimen